Let empathy show
Since I love stories of kindness, I’m going to share a short one today. In the lobby of a doctor’s office, I sat quietly next to a few women. They were all seemingly older than me by decades. Different ages, same visiting reasons though. The lobby had the typical relaxed design found at most hospitals — plain, neatly put together, but the space was anything but quiet since the crowd in a TV show erupted every minute.
A few chairs surrounded the TV mounted on the wall — some faced it, some were lined up against it. I picked a seat facing the TV, even though I had little to no interest in watching the morning talk show that was on. Next to me sat an older woman with a white cane. If my face hadn’t been so deeply buried on my phone screen, I would’ve noticed that she was visually impaired before the not-so discrete person behind the check-in window aired all her business out. (What’s up with those check-in shout outs?!) But that’s beside de point.
The story is that I remember that lady now for her sweet, empathetic responsiveness. I wasn’t watching the talk show, but as soon I heard the host say that a guest was “cancer free,” I was all ears and swiftly looked up — just in time to catch the lady next to me throw her fists in the air repeatedly in a triumphant cheer.
My immediate reaction was teary eyes. I am convinced that nothing rushes faster than my tears at the slightest sense of sympathy.
So, naturally, there I was, tearing up at the sight of a stranger cheering up for another stranger’s victory. It made me feel so good about humanity that day, even if just for a fraction of an hour; even if just because of one person, another empath. I live for days when people act humanely, and they let it show.
